A famous hockey player at the University of Illinois was suspended after a woman accused him of sexual abuse, but the university has now dropped its own investigation into the swimmer.
Terrence Shannon Jr. was suspended from the Illinois baseball team after being allegedly raped in Kansas, according to an Associated Press report from earlier this year. Shannon properly persuaded a judge in the U.S. District Court to overturn the expulsion and allow him to resume playing, and the university has now abandoned its try to control the athlete citing a lack of evidence.
After a person claimed that he put his hands under her scarf and violated her, Shannon was charged with rape on December 5 by Douglas County, Kansas prosecutor. After watching Illinois play Kansas in a basketball game, Shannon and a partner were drinking in a bar, the alleged affair took place on September 9, 2023. The girl claimed that Shannon, who she had identified after searching the school’s website hockey team roster, had called her over and had grabbed her buttocks before reaching under her trousers to sexually touch her, according to the AP.
According to the AP report, a graduate assistant for the sports team who drove Shannon and his partner to Kansas and served as a companion said he was close to Shannon the whole night in question and that he had never seen anything the lady described in her allegations.
Shannon was suspended from the University of Illinois after the charges were brought, and he missed six matches. On January 19, Judge Colleen Lawless determined that Shannon had been abducted by the school without having access to his “protected home interests” and had been denied by the school. She noted that Shannon was supporting a number of family members, and that his expulsion threatened to harm his chances of being one of the first NBA draft picks and of earning money through endorsements permitted by the NCAA’s name, picture, and image coverage.
” Plaintiff’s participation in activities is vital to the development of his job as well as his current and future financial opportunities considering defendant’s purpose to consider for the 2024 NBA Draft”, Lawless wrote in her decision, the AP reported. ” Due to his expulsion, plaintiff was projected to be a raffle get in the NBA. His contribution in upcoming games has an impact on both his earning potential and his draft chances.
Illinois stated in a letter to Shannon, his accuser, and school officials that it would not pursue administrative trials against the star player on April 5.
The school’s director of its Office for Student Conflict Resolution stated that it was determined that the evidence at this time was insufficient to allow a reasonable hearing panel to find Shannon [in violation of the Student Code sections identified in the allegation notice. ” For example, access to the complainant, the complainant’s witness and the complete Lawrence Police Department file was not available to the investigator”.
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The school administrator continued,” The complainant has not indicated an intention to participate in a hearing before a hearing panel at this time.” ” As a result, the process has concluded, charges have been dropped, and no disciplinary action will be taken against]Shannon ] at this time”.
The school did, however, say that it may bring disciplinary proceedings against Shannon should “new substantial evidence” come to light.
Shannon still faces charges in Kansas. In December, his attorney told ABC 7 that Shannon is innocent.
” Since September, when these allegations surfaced, Terrence has cooperated with law enforcement throughout the investigation, declaring his innocence from the beginning”, the attorney said. ” Now, several months later, my office learned that formal charges were filed against him]in December ] in Lawrence, KS. In less than 24 hours, my client responded, and he voluntarily surrendered to local authorities for processing and release. Terry is innocent of these accusations, and he intends to bring his case to trial.
Shannon’s team was ranked 14th in the nation and second in the Big Ten conference, with Shannon averaging 21.7 points per game, according to the AP.
